Virginia's elections of 1869 occurred during the post-
American Civil WarReconstruction Era and included African-American candidates and so-called "
carpetbaggers", politicians from the North, often former Union Army officers, who ran in elections in southern states then under the authority of the Federal government and U.S. Army. The election included the 1869 Virginia gubernatorial election held on July 6, 1869, to elect the
governor of Virginia.
Gilbert Carlton Walker was elected as a "True Republican" defeating H. H. Wells, who was running as a "Radical Republican." Walker switched his party affiliation to
Democratic in 1870.
Elections results brought 21 African Americans to office in the
Virginia House of Delegates and six to the
Virginia State Senate.[1]Thomas Bayne was a party leader among the African-American group, although he lost the election when a White Republican ran against him in the same election, splitting the vote and allowing a Democrat to win.[1]